IN020-02
How deregulation, drought, and increasing fire impact Amazonian biodiversity
Thursday, 10 December 2020: 16:04
Virtual
Xiao Feng1,2, Cory Merow3, Brian S. Maitner4, Daniel S Park5, Patrick Roehrdanz6, Zhihua Liu7, Erica Newman4, Bradley Boyle8, Aaron Lien4, Robbie Burger1, Mathias M Pires9, Paulo M Brando10, Mark B Bush11, Crystal H McMichael12, Danilo M. Neves13, Efthymios Nikolopoulos14,15, Scott R Saleska16, Lee Hannah17, David D Breshears18, Tom Evans19, Jose R Soto4, Kacey C Ernst20 and Brian Joseph Enquist21, (1)University of Arizona, Institute of the Environment, Tucson, AZ, United States, (2)Florida State University, Department of Geography, Tallahassee, AZ, United States, (3)University of Connecticut, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Storrs, CT, United States, (4)University of Arizona, Tucson, United States, (5)Harvard University, Boston, United States, (6)Conservation International, Arlington, United States, (7)University of Montana, Missoula, MT, United States, (8)University of Arizona, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Tucson, United States, (9)Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas, Brazil, (10)University of California Irvine, Department of Earth System Science, Irvine, CA, United States, (11)Florida Institute of Technology, Institute for Global Ecology, Melbourne, FL, United States, (12)University of Amsterdam, Institute for Biodiversity & Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Amsterdam, Netherlands, (13)Federal University of Minas Gerais, Department of Botany, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, (14)Florida Institute of Technology, Mechanical and Civil Engineering, Melbourne, FL, United States, (15)University of Connecticut, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Storrs, CT, United States, (16)University of Arizona, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Tucson, AZ, United States, (17)Conservation International, Arlington, VA, United States, (18)University of Arizona, School of Natural Resources and the Environment, Tucson, AZ, United States, (19)University of Arizona, School of Geography & Development, Tucson, United States, (20)University of Arizona, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Tucson, AZ, United States, (21)University of Arizona, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Tucson, AZ, United States
Abstract:
Biodiversity has contributed to ecological and climatic stability within the Amazon Basin. With imperfect knowledge of Amazonian biodiversity, the impacts of human-caused fires have yet to be fully quantified. Here, we apply remote sensing estimates of forest fires and a comprehensive collection of biodiversity data to quantify the extent to which species may have been impacted by forest fires over the last two decades. We find a close link between forest policy, forest area burned, and potential biodiversity impacts. Since 2002, ~214,053-293,705 km2 or 2.9-4.0% of the Amazon forest has burned. We estimate that 78.8-90.0% of the IUCN endangered species in Amazon could have been impacted. The impact on a species range in Amazon could be as high as 58.3%, while greater impacts are more associated with species with restricted ranges. In Brazil, deforestation policies initiated in the mid-2000s corresponded to reduced rates of burning and potential biodiversity impact. However, relaxed enforcement in 2019 seemingly began to reverse this trend. Over 17,751 km2 of forest were burned, leading to some of the most severe potential biodiversity impacts since 2009. These results highlight the critical role of active policy enforcement in the preservation of biodiversity in the Amazon.
